Maine is the only state in America that has the state Legislature elect the attorney general. Usually, I appreciate this constitutional quirk, because it helps cement Maine’s status as a political oddball – and because it means fewer political ads on the radio and in my mailbox during election season.

But it also means the attorney general has a little less widespread accountability to the people of Maine. The attorney general is a very important governmental role and I suspect it will become even more vital in the next few years as the federal government looks likely to send more and more issues back to the states.

Even within a single state, an attorney general is an important defender of citizens. Back in the Paul LePage era, the erstwhile governor often ended up at odds with Attorney General Janet Mills – recall in 2017, she joined other state attorneys general (I just love that plural, don’t you?) in signing a statement opposing Trump’s Muslim travel ban, among other things.

Aaron Frey has been Maine’s attorney general since 2019 and has done a good job at attorney-generaling. However, that solid job performance has not made me forget that back in April 2023, it was revealed that Attorney General Frey had been in an undisclosed romantic relationship with a direct subordinate for eight months. A married direct subordinate, to boot.

Now, I can certainly understand not disclosing a relationship for a month or two – while you’re in that stage of seeing if it’s going anywhere. But eight months? I’m no Casanova but I’ve dated enough to know that is serious relationship territory.

If he had been a state employee in any other branch, he would have been required to disclose this ASAP, and there would have been a mechanism for accountability and punishment. But the office has different rules, and its sexual harassment policy doesn’t include any language about consensual relationships between subordinates and supervisors.

Getting involved with a direct subordinate in a workplace is bad enough, but to keep it undisclosed for eight months? It may not violate the letter of the law but it certainly violates the spirit of the law, and it shows poor judgment to boot. Either Frey knew about the rules and ignored them, which is bad, or he was ignorant of them, which is also bad. A.G. Frey has done a perfectly good job as attorney general, and I appreciate that. But these actions lead me to believe he does not deserve another term.

It doesn’t sit right with me that there were no consequences for his error, except for getting egg on his face in the paper. Leading a department isn’t just about the work you do day-to-day; it’s also about the example you set.

Maeghan Maloney is also running for state attorney general. She has been the district attorney general for Kennebec and Somerset counties (so we’re practically neighbors) and she’s done a solid job. I believe she will be a solid attorney general. Her pitch to legislators is that she isn’t term-limited and so could serve all four years of President Trump’s term and provide steady, consistent leadership through what will no doubt be many lengthy court battles (25% Canadian tariffs, anyone?).

Maloney went to Harvard Law School (alongside current Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, no less!) and initiated a system of bail reform in Kennebec County in 2019 that switched from a purely cash-based system (where if you don’t have bail money you’re out of luck and jailed until trial) to a risk-assessment system.

Maloney also helped spearhead a medication-assisted addiction treatment program at the Kennebec County Jail, helping inmates gain access to Suboxone, which is the gold standard for addiction treatment. (Obviously, I personally don’t think anyone should be in jail purely for being addicted to illegal drugs, but I understand that’s still a bit of a left-wing viewpoint.)

Maloney would be solid legal representation for Maine. The Legislature is set to vote on the next state attorney general on Dec. 4. I encourage my state representative, Wayne Farrin, and my state senator, Cameron Reny, to vote for Maloney.